Foods Packaging Assistant Manager

Unilever is currently hiring for Foods Packaging Assistant Manager

Function: Research and Development

Reports to: Foods Packaging Lead

Scope: Southern Africa and East & West Africa markets

Location: South Africa

Terms & Conditions: Full time

ABOUT UNILEVER

With 3.4 billion people in over 190 countries using our products every day, Unilever is a business that makes a real impact on the world. Work on brands that are loved and improve the lives of our consumers and the communities around us. We are driven by our purpose: to make sustainable living commonplace, and it is our belief that doing business the right way drives superior performance. At the heart of what we do is our people – we believe that when our people work with purpose, we will create a better business and a better world. 

At Unilever, your career will be a unique journey, grounded in our inclusive, collaborative, and flexible working environment. We don’t believe in the ‘one size fits all’ approach and instead we will equip you with the tools you need to shape your own future.

ABOUT FOODS

Foods is an exciting global category where you get to work on global brands like Knorr and Hellmanns and in the 1UL markets also on local brands such as Royco, Robertsons and Knorrox. The Foods business strives to bring the taste everyone loves to brighten every day through catalyzing market growth catalysts, innovate with a ‘Future Fit’ sustainability mindset and being a consistent top tier Foods business with industry leading capabilities. In this context, in Research and Development we strive to design healthy sustainable products that every consumer loves, can afford and want to pick up and use again and again.

JOB PURPOSE

Unilever is the place where you can bring your purpose to life with the work that you do – creating a better business and a better world.  If you are passionate about the impact of packaging to the end consumer experience of food products, opportunities to design and execute for sustainability and the better of the planet and love the thrill of excellent execution then this role is just for you.

WHAT WILL YOUR MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES BE

• Lead Packaging Development activities for category innovation and deploy projects to deliver category growth and sustainability goals across Southern Africa.

• Provide technical input for new project briefs and participate in lead concept selection through prototype development, evaluation and testing.

• Monitor competitor activity and assess use of packaging technologies for competitive advantage in terms of consumer appeal, functionality, cost and availability. 

• Lead component approval, packaging testing & qualification to ensure components meet consumer expectations, functional requirements, customer needs, cost targets, manufacturing and distribution demands.

• Develop and obtain information to create technical packaging component specifications.

• Partner with other functions to identify value improvement projects, evaluate feasibility, establish capability and implement to achieve profitable growth category goals.

• Lead risk identification, assessment and action planning for packaging change projects and participate in risk assessment activities for innovation, VIP and supply chain support projects.

• Provide leadership for packaging change projects through project management, including such activities as clarification of project goals & scope, collaborating to develop business cases and preparing detailed project plans.

• Partner with supply chain, the R&D network (local- global) and suppliers to land localization projects.

• Collaborate with brand teams to deliver packaging concepts, designs, specifications and technologies to maximize the impact of brand communication in the category.

• Grow the R&D packaging talent pool through development of self and contributing to the development of others in terms of technical packaging knowledge, professional and general skills.

• Keep abreast of and evaluate emerging packaging technologies for opportunities to contribute to category sustainability goals.

• Exploit emerging digital technologies for effective collaboration with business partners. Operate all relevant digital tools & technologies and ensure a high level of data quality.

• Stay abreast of technical developments and regulatory updates in the Foods category

• Commit to personal development and professional growth by actively participating in personal development initiatives discussed or mentioned in the Future Fit Plan

WHAT YOU NEED TO SUCCEED

Experiences & Qualifications

• Degree or Diploma in Packaging, Materials Science, Physics, Chemistry, Engineering or a related technical field, with 3 to 5 years' experience in packaging development, design or innovation.

• Packaging work stream leadership in a cross functional project environment.

• Project leadership in functional area.

• Packaging methods and measurement, testing, data analysis and reporting.

• Trial briefing, planning, co-ordination and execution. Trial reporting and analysis of outcomes

Skills

• Excellence in Science and Technology Expertise.

• Professional networking with external focus.

• Building and maintaining relationships with an ability to be persuasive and assertive when necessary

• Ability to work well both independently and as part of a wider cross-functional team.

• Excellent communication skills with an ability to engage effectively with both internal and external partners

• Skilled in analyzing risk and stakeholder management

• A passion & curiosity for learning about technology, customers and consumers

• Attention to detail especially in data collection, analysis and reporting

• Good time-management skills to handle multiple projects, in a dynamic environment with changing priorities.

• Digitally savvy – ability to learn and use systems for maximum efficiency

• Creativity in activating science in consumer language and engaging consumers and non-scientists

Leadership

• You are energized by delivering fantastic results. You are an example to others – both your results and your resilience. You are constantly on the lookout for better ways to do things, engaging and collaborating with others along the way.

• As an individual you are the one responsible for your own wellbeing and delivering high standards of work. You must also focus on the Consumer and what they need. You are humble and have your head up, looking around to interpret evidence and data smartly, spot issues and opportunities to make things better.

• Unilever  Behaviors

• Care Deeply: We care deeply about how consumers experience our brands every day, everywhere; about our people’s growth and development, and our impact on the planet. We care about our performance, to a point where it hurts when we don’t win.

• Focus on What Counts: We ruthlessly prioritise what truly matters, and so do fewer things brilliantly. We set clear goals & direction and recognise others for maximum impact.

• Stay Three Steps Ahead: We think boldly and creatively to make breakthroughs in performance. We are always curious and confident - anticipating and staying ahead of consumer needs and external trends, to beat the competition.

• Deliver with Excellence: We deliver excellence in what we do at pace. We take personal ownership and hold each other to account – always finding a way to do what we said we will do.

Unilever is an equal opportunities employer and committed to diversity and inclusivity in the workplace.  We are intentional in employing the best talent that reflects the demographics of our country and which will help build representation of currently under-represented groups. We therefore invite applications from all candidates representing diversity of age, sex, disability, sexual orientation, race, religion or belief. When appointing potential candidates, the South African Employment Equity and Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Legislation will be considered.  

We are required by law to verify your ability to work lawfully in South Africa. If you are applying as a foreign national, please note that you may be requested to provide supporting documents supporting this. 

Unilever is an organisation committed to equity, inclusion and diversity to drive our business results and create a better future, every day, for our diverse employees, global consumers, partners, and communities. We believe a diverse workforce allows us to match our growth ambitions and drive inclusion across the business. At Unilever we are interested in every individual bringing their ‘Whole Self’ to work and this includes you! Thus if you require any support or access requirements, we encourage you to advise us at the time of your application so that we can support you through your recruitment journey.